THE KITCHEN FRONT

Narrator Jasmine Blackborow captivatingly re-creates England during WWII, focusing on its hardworking women and a BBC-sponsored contest to use the limited ingredients of food rations to prepare tasty, healthy dishes. Listeners will experience life in tiny Finley, including occasional air raids, and meet evacuees from other places and four women who are determined to win the competition. Blackborow's delightfully diverse ladies include Audrey Langdon, a war widow with three children; her estranged upper-class sister, Lady Strickland; young, insecure housemaid and fabulous cook Nell Brown, and Zelda DuPont, a successful London chef who's billeted with Langdon. Most memorable is elderly cook Mrs. Quince, who dispenses wisdom and kindness. Lively accents, blooming romance, and people coping with difficulties make for a worthwhile and poignant listen. S.G.B. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2021]